


Those Were the Days

by miss_grey



Series: What We Do In The Dark [27]
Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Gen, M/M, Supernatural AU - Freeform, drug mention but no use, hunter carwood lipton, shifter george luz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-01
Updated: 2019-07-01
Packaged: 2020-05-31 15:26:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,836
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19428769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miss_grey/pseuds/miss_grey
Summary: The story of Carwood Lipton and George Luz.





	Those Were the Days

**Author's Note:**

> Alright guys, here is the chapter a lot of you have been waiting for. Hope it doesn't disappoint! Also, quick reminder that I will be going out of town for work in a few days and I will likely be posting very slow or nonexistent updates for the month of July. Still hoping to get at least one more out before I go.

Carwood exhaled a breath when The Doc and his red-headed companion headed off down the road, relieved to be out of the witch’s line of sight. Carwood was grateful to him for the help he’d given in the past, but what he’d just seen was a show of such controlled power that Carwood never wanted to end up on his bad side. 

After they retreated, Carwood realized he stood in the middle of the street surrounded by a pack of werewolves who glared at him suspiciously and though Carwood always traveled with some sort of protection, he was under no illusions that it would save him here if they decided to attack. He glanced around him again, just tallying his odds once more, before he fixed his gaze on George. _George!_ Carwood licked his lips nervously, shifted on his feet. “Can we talk?” He asked.

Luz opened his mouth to reply when one of the taller werewolves pushed forward, a protective hand on Luz’s shoulder. “Who is this guy, George? The Doc said he’s a hunter.” Carwood could hear the growl in his voice—these guys had already been through one ordeal today, and now Carwood’s appearance was a second. _Yeah, perfect timing._

Carwood nodded slightly. “I am, it’s true. But that’s not why I’m here. I came to see George. He’s my friend.”

Luz patted the tall werewolf’s hand before he shrugged delicately out from his hold. “I’ll be okay, Joe. Promise.” He met the wolf’s eyes for a second before the taller man nodded and took a step back, directing his still-threatening gaze toward Carwood. “Lip and I have a lot of catching up we need to do, so I’ll see you guys later.”

“Holler if you need us!” Another of the wolves called, a man with a prominent lower jaw and heavy brows, who looked at Carwood like he wouldn’t mind beating him if it came to it.

Luz waved a hand toward his friends, calling “Will do!” Then he motioned for Carwood to follow him and he led him down the block, and around a corner. They didn’t talk on the way, and Carwood wasn’t even sure where they were going—he was still in shock, first at realizing that yes, it was _George Luz_ standing next to him, and secondly, because of the (brief) confrontation with the Doc. Eventually, though, they reached a Chinese takeout that was currently closed, and Luz stopped. “My place is upstairs.” He said, motioning. “Wanna come up for a coffee?”

“Yeah,” Carwood gulped, nodding. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

“Alright, come on then,” George said, and he unlocked a side door, holding it open for Carwood before locking it behind them, and leading him up a narrow set of stairs to a one room apartment, which, although small, was still relatively tidy and comfortable looking. Carwood hadn’t known what to expect, but this… _reserve_ …was new. George motioned for Carwood to take a seat at the small kitchen table, but then he busied himself with making coffee, back turned to Carwood. Only once the coffee was finished and poured did Luz turn around. He sat Carwood’s in front of him and then leaned back against the counter, holding his in his hands. “I heard about what happened to your family, Lip. I’m sorry.”

Carwood fiddled with the handle of the coffee mug. “Yeah. Thanks.”

George took a sip of his own coffee and regarded Carwood over the lip of the mug for a long moment. Then: “Why are you here, Lip?”

Carwood cleared his throat and sat up a bit straighter, focusing on the slighter man. “A friend told me there was a report of someone matching your description living with a pack of werewolves in Philadelphia. I had to come see for myself.”

“But why?” George shrugged. “Why now?”

“Now?” Carwood frowned. “I’ve been looking for you for years, Luz!”

George frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. “Have you?”

“Yes.” Carwood glanced up at him with sad eyes, old heartbreak welling up in his chest again, more fragile now because of his _recent_ heartache. “Why didn’t you ever come find me?”

Luz shifted on his feet, shrugging. “At first it wasn’t safe. And then, well….” He spread his hands helplessly. “I heard what happened to your family, and that you became a hunter. And…well… I couldn’t stand the thought that you might see me as a monster now, too, so I stayed away.”

Carwood tightened his hand around his coffee mug and looked at his friend, _his friend,_ and voice sad, soft, assured “I could never think that about you, George.”

* * *

_Junior Year, High School_

Carwood finished up his notes from the last period while he waited for Mrs. Davies to get the lesson started. His classmates gossiped and threw notes to one another, laughing, while the teacher stood in the hallway, talking with some other adult who Carwood couldn’t see but could sort of hear—maybe the vice principal?

Carwood frowned down at his notes, correcting one line, when Mrs. Davies walked in and Carwood raised his eyes in time to see a boy follow her in. “Class, I’d like to introduce our new student, George Luz.” The boy—George—was thin and on the shorter side, with sandy brown hair, hazel eyes, and a smirk on his face. “George, why don’t you go take a seat next to Carwood. Carwood, raise your hand for George, would you?”

Carwood raised his hand obediently and the new kid made his way casually to the seat next to him. “Hi,” Carwood said, giving him a smile.

George smiled back, not a smirk this time. “Hey.”

Carwood was taking notes diligently, while Mrs. Davies lectured at the front of the room, but when she turned, George leaned closer to Carwood and murmured “So what do you all do for fun around here?”

Carwood meant to shush him, but when he turned, the other boy looked so charmingly devilish with his little smirk that Carwood only smiled back and whispered, “Sports, mostly. But, uh…there’s a diner with an arcade in town…and a lake about a mile away that a lot of the kids go to.”

George huffed and said “Sounds great. You’ll have to show me, sometime.”

Turning his attention back to the front of the class, Carwood thought about it and figured, _Why not?_

And that was how it started.

* * *

Luz pushed away from the pinball machine, grumbling “What a fuckin’ move, George. Sure, just move the lever up when the ball goes _down,_ geez.” He glanced to the side. “Hey Lip, you got another quarter?”

“Yeah,” Carwood said, eyes still fixed on the game in front of him, “yeah, in my pocket, hold on.” With one hand, he maneuvered the joystick to keep his character moving, and with the other he rummaged in his pocket for the extra quarter, slapping it into Luz’s hand before he resumed his game. “It’s my last one,” Carwood said, dodging the ax of his enemy, “make it last!”

“Thanks, buddy,” Luz said, bumping shoulders with him, before returning to his pinball game. “I’m definitely gonna win this one.” 

The ball fell through the cracks again about forty seconds in. Luz sighed in defeat, shoulders sagging. “Well. That sucked.” He murmured, but then Carwood was at his shoulder, laughing. 

“Come on, Georgie, let’s get you a milkshake, then you’ll feel better.”

Luz smiled at his friend. “You know me so well, Lip.”

* * *

Carwood’s phone chirped, waking him, and he glanced at it in the dark to see he had a text from George: _Meet me outside._

Carwood frowned but proceeded to dress quietly in the darkness of his room, careful not to wake his mother, brother, or their boarders. He crept silently out of the house and made his way down the drive, searching the darkness for his friend. Finally, when he made it down the lane, a pair of headlights flashed on and Carwood smirked, heading over to the car.

“Get in!” Luz hissed.

Carwood pulled the door open and settled inside the old station wagon. “Joyriding, Luz?” He asked, casting a grin at the other boy.

Luz smirked from his spot behind the steering wheel. “You know me…only the fanciest for George Luz!” He cackled and put the car in reverse, backing slowly away from the boarding house. 

Carwood frowned. “Isn’t this your dad’s car?”

George shrugged. “He won’t need it ‘til the morning, anyway. And I needed to get out.”

Carwood turned to his friend. “Anything wrong?”

“Nah, just feeling cooped up, ya know?”

“Sure.” Carwood nodded. “So where we headed?”

“Bet the lake is pretty nice this time of night.”

“Okay.”

They made their way to the lake, music turned up, windows down, and Carwood sighed, letting his body relax in the passenger seat. When they parked, he turned to look at his friend and couldn’t help but gasp. “Whoa,” he said, reaching out a hand before pausing, then dropping it, awkward.

“What?” George said, bewildered.

“Your eyes,” Carwood said, peering at him through the gloom. “I guess I just never noticed how… bright of a green they were until now.”

“Oh,” George said, chuckling, as he lowered his eyes. “Yeah, must just be the weird light out here,” he said. 

Only, there wasn’t any light aside from the gibbous moon.

* * *

Carwood leaned against the bleachers, panting, after his three mile run. He was trying to get back into shape in time for tryouts—he’d been on the baseball team last year, but that didn’t automatically guarantee him a spot this year, so that meant he had to work harder than the other guys if he wanted it. And he did.

He groped around for his water bottle, when it was miraculously handed to him. He turned to find Luz perched on the bleachers, a smirk on his face, cigarette hanging out of his mouth. 

“Thanks,” Carwood gasped, before he took a deep drink of the water. 

“Yeah, no problem. Saw you out there running like a crazy person.” Luz said. 

“It’s not crazy,” Carwood admonished. “I wanna be on the team. Means I’ve got to work hard.”

“You already work harder than literally anyone I’ve ever met.” Luz laughed. “I’m sure you’ve got nothing to worry about.”

Carwood shrugged. “Better safe than sorry.”

“Right.” Luz said, taking a pull on his cigarette before offering it to Carwood.

Carwood shook his head. “No, thanks. You know I don’t smoke.”

Luz rolled his eyes. “Have you ever even tried it?”

“No.”

“Wanna be a bit rebellious, Lip?”

Carwood huffed. “I literally just ran three miles, George. I don’t think a cigarette’s gonna help me.”

Luz shrugged. “Probably right.” He took another puff, then, blowing out the smoke, imitated their principal’s high pitched voice, “ _Smoking is the REAL gateway drug, kids! You know what comes next, right? Mar-i-ju-ana!”_

Carwood cast him a glance out of the corner of his eye. “You’re really good at that, you know?”

“What?” Luz said, grinding out the remainder of his cigarette.

“Imitating voices. I mean, you do it a lot, and you’re always right on point.” 

“Thanks,” Luz said, looking away. “It’s a talent.”

“I’ll bet.”

* * *

Luz flopped onto Carwood’s bed, arm thrown over his eyes dramatically. “This math test tomorrow is gonna fucking kill me, I swear to God.”

Carwood sat on the floor next to his bed and busied himself with pulling his math book and notes out. “No, it’s not.” He huffed. “You’ll be fine, George, you’ve just got to study.”

“No, Lip. I’m serious. Math makes _zero_ sense to me. And not even your miraculous tutoring is gonna save me.”

Carwood sighed. “Well, not with that attitude. Come on, George, sit up, and I’ll help you.”

“Fine,” Luz sighed, hauling himself upright. “What first?”

Carwood glanced up at him, answer ready on the tip of tongue, when he frowned. “George….”

“Yeah?”

“Something’s wrong with your eyes.”

“What?” George asked, reaching up to rub them. “What’s wrong with them?”

“They’re… brown.”

George glanced away. “You must be seeing things,” he said, rubbing his eyes once more. “My eyes aren’t brown.”

“I know,” Carwood said, rising to his knees, hands reaching out for his friend. “Did you get contacts? What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Luz insisted, pulling away and looking up. “See? I’m fine.”

Carwood gulped, his fingers trembling as he stared up at his friend. “Luz. Now they’re blue.”

“Fuck,” Luz hissed, scrambling to his feet. “Sorry Lip, I gotta go.”

“No, wait!” Carwood called, hauling himself to his feet and rushing to catch his friend before he could make it to the door. He grabbed his arm, gently, and said “Come on, George… what’s wrong? You’re my best friend. You can tell me.”

Luz turned, shoulders still tense for a moment, but when he met Carwood’s eyes with his own bright blue ones, his shoulders sagged and he slumped back against the door. “You won’t believe me.”

Carwood shook his head. “’Course I will, George. Come on, what is it? What’s going on?”

George took a shaky breath and flashed Carwood his attempt at a smirk. “Promise not to tell?”

“Yeah,” Carwood nodded, his palms sweaty now from the anticipation. “I promise. What is it?”

George chuckled, the fingers of one hand twisting around the wrist of his other, more nervous than Carwood had ever seen him. “You ever heard of something called a shifter?”

“A what?”

George chuckled again and gazed up at Carwood from under his lashes. “Well you see…here’s the thing….”

* * *

_Senior Year, High School_

“She said hi to me again today,” Carwood said, hitching his backpack higher up on his shoulder. Luz strolled along beside him, their feet kicking up dust on the short walk up to the boarding house. “And I overheard her tell Cindy that she’s gonna be at the game on Friday night.”

Luz rolled his eyes. “Is this Lily McCabe we’re talking about?”

Carwood nodded. “Yeah.”

“Why don’t you just tell her you like her?” Luz asked, elbowing his friend. Carwood frowned at him as they reached the house and he let them in. “Seriously, just ask her out. Nice guy like you, she’s bound to say yes.” They made their way up to Carwood’s room where they dumped their bags on the floor. 

Carwood turned to his friend. “I can’t just come out and say it like that!” He protested.

“Why not?”

“I wouldn’t even know what to say.” Carwood muttered.

Luz eyed him for a minute before his usual devilish smirk quirked his lips. “Alright, we’ll practice, then.” A moment later, a perfect imitation of Lily stood in Carwood’s bedroom and Luz’s voice had changed as well. “Come on, Lip,” Luz said, sauntering toward him to lay a hand on his arm. “Tell me how you feel.”

Carwood blushed beet red, and he could feel the heat all the way to the tips of his ears. “Come on, Luz,” he said, turning away. “Don’t do that. It’s not funny.”

Luz changed back abruptly, cackling, and slapping his leg as he said “I can’t believe how hard you just blushed.” He laughed again for another minute before he said “Alright.” Gasp. “Alright. I won’t do it again. But seriously. Ask her out. She’ll say yes.”

* * *

One morning, shortly before homecoming, Luz trudged into third hour looking like he’d been hit by a truck. His shoulders slumped and he had dark circles under his usually lively eyes. His hair was limp, like he hadn’t showered that morning, and Carwood hadn’t seen him before first hour, so he was pretty sure Luz had just arrived. He tried to catch Luz’s eye as his friend sat down next to him, but the boy only pulled out his textbook mechanically and began to take notes.

Carwood didn’t get a chance to talk to him until lunchtime. When the bell rang, Carwood raced to catch up with George, and once he did, he laid a hand on his shoulder and said “Hey, hold on a sec, Luz. What’s wrong? You don’t look so good.”

George cast his eyes around the hallway for a second before motioning Carwood to follow him outside. The day was warm, still, but with a cool breeze blowing in, the first breath of fall. George led him to the football field, which was empty at this hour, and George settled himself down in the middle of it, plucking at a blade of grass while he waited for his friend to join him. “My dad heard a rumor.” He said.

Carwood frowned. “What kind of rumor?”

“Someone might be looking for him. For us.” George raised his eyes to Carwood’s and they were red-rimmed, still exhausted.

“What for? Who’s looking for you guys?”

George sighed. “Because of what we are. You know.”

Still frowning, Carwood asked “So someone came looking for you?”

“Yeah. It happens sometimes.”

“Well, what do you do about it?”

George smiled sadly at his friend. “Hey, are you still going to ask Lily to homecoming?”

“Don’t change the subject, George.”

“Nothing to do about my problem,” George reasoned. “So no use worrying about it, really.”

Carwood reached out a hand and laid it comfortingly on George’s shoulder. “I know you are though, George. I can see the worry on your face. Are you sure there isn’t anything I can do? Who is this person?”

George sighed, obviously resigned. “There’s nothing you can do, Lip. It’s just… something we have to deal with. We don’t know who it is, yet. Just… a hunter.”

“Hunter? What in the world does that mean? What does he hunt?”

George gulped, lowering his eyes to the field. “Creatures like me.”

Carwood swallowed thickly and his heart hammered in his chest. Some guy was out there, looking for his best friend. To do what? Hurt him? _Kill him_? That just didn’t make any sense. Luz would never hurt a fly. But he knew that George didn’t want to talk about it anymore, so Carwood simply scooted closer so that they could sit next to each other, pressed shoulder to shoulder. They spent the next hour like that.

* * *

A week before Halloween, Carwood was awoken in the middle of the night by a frantic tapping at his bedroom window. Jerked out of a dream, Carwood pried his eyes open to see the pale, worried face of George Luz staring at him from his window. Carwood threw his sheets back and rushed to the window, snapping it open and letting his friend inside from where he’d been perched in the tree.

“George,” Carwood said, reaching out for his friend, whose eyes were wide with panic, whose body trembled. “What’s wrong? Talk to me.”

“He’s here.” George said, pacing back and forth in front of Carwood, hands shaking in front of him.

“Who’s here?” Carwood asked, reaching again for his friend. “Come on, George. Talk to me. What’s going on?”

“The hunter. He’s here. In Huntington. He found us.”

Carwood could have sworn his heart stopped. “What?” He croaked.

“I’ve gotta go. My family…we have to leave.”

“What? When?”

“Now,” George gasped, finally stopping his frantic movements long enough to look up at Carwood. “We’re leaving now. They’re packing as we speak. I just… I couldn’t leave without telling you. You’re the best friend I’ve ever had, Lip.”

Carwood felt his throat clog up and he reached for his friend, pulling him close. “Don’t go, George. Please. Stay. I’ll help you. I’ll do whatever you need me to.”

“Can’t,” George croaked. “If he finds us, he’ll kill us. I have to leave.” He began shuddering again. “I need to go—my parents will be waiting.”

Carwood felt tears well in his eyes. “Okay…. Okay. Just… call me when you’re safe, alright, George? Let me know you’re okay.”

“Sure, Lip. I will.” George promised.

Carwood tugged his friend into a hug and held him tight, tears dripping down his cheeks into Luz’s soft hair. He held on for as long as he could, heartbroken and terrified for his friend. But eventually, George really did have to go. He pulled out of Carwood’s arms reluctantly, cast one last wave to his friend, then climbed back into the tree and hurried down it. Carwood went to his bedroom window and just barely caught a glimpse of George sprinting to the shadowed form of his car at the end of the lane.

Carwood didn’t sleep for the rest of that night.

Or the night after.

Or the night after that.

Eventually, pure exhaustion claimed him.

George never called.

* * *

_Present_

Carwood continued to fiddle with the handle of the coffee mug. “When you never called…well. I assumed the worst. I thought that hunter had killed you, George. You and your whole family.” He cleared his throat. “I mourned you. But I couldn’t think of anything else to do. I didn’t know how to reach you.” He took a sip of the cold coffee, now, just to give himself a moment. Then “Did your parents… I mean… did they make it?”

“Yeah,” George smiled, softly. “They’re retired. Living in Florida now.”

Carwood nodded. “Good. That’s…good. I’m glad.” He gulped another mouthful of the coffee. “When…when I became a hunter, I was pretty messed up for a while. I couldn’t think of anything except revenge.”

“Understandable.”

“Maybe.” Carwood heaved a heavy sigh and stared up at the sympathetic face of his friend. “But when my mind cleared…I thought of you. When I was a kid, I had no way to look for you. But now, as a hunter…well. I had resources available to me. A whole network. I started looking for you again a couple years ago.”

George nodded. “I’ve been here for about that long. Living with the Pack.”

“Do they know?” Carwood asked. “That you’re not a wolf?”

George shrugged. “A couple of ‘em do. They don’t seem to mind.” He finally pushed away from the counter and came to sit in the chair opposite Carwood. “They’re my family now, Lip. I like living here.”

Carwood nodded. “I meant what I said… I’m not here for them. I only came to find you.”

“Well…I appreciate it.” George sighed, reaching out to lay a hand on Carwood’s shoulder. “And for what it’s worth…I’m sorry.”

“I’m just glad I finally found you.”

“Yeah,” George smiled, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Me too.” After a moment of quiet, George glanced toward the window. “It’s getting dark. You have a place to stay?”

“Not yet. I figured I’d go find a motel once I located you.”

“Mmmm.” George hummed. “Well, you can stay here. My couch isn’t great, but at least it’s free, yeah?” He patted Carwood on the shoulder. “Come on. Let’s get you set up, and then you can tell me what’s been going on in your life, lately.”

Carwood laughed wetly, but hoped George didn’t notice. “Okay, George. Thanks.”

**Author's Note:**

> Remember guys, comments are love and keep me motivated to write! Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. And also feel free to come say hi on tumblr. I'm @realhunterswearplaid.


End file.
